LWT - Food Science and Technology 83 (2017) 150e156

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LWT - Food Science and Technology

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Morphological, physicochemical and functional characteristics of

starch from Marantha ruiziana Koern
J.D. Hoyos-Leyva a, L. Alonso-Gomez a, J. Rueda-Enciso b, H. Yee-Madeira c,
L.A. Bello-Perez a, *, J. Alvarez-Ramirez d
a
Instituto Polit

ecnico Nacional, CEPROBI, Km 6 Carr, Yautepec-Jojutla, Calle Ceprobi No. 8, Colonia San Isidro, Apartado Postal 24, Yautepec, Morelos, 62731,
Mexico
b
Universidad de los Llanos, Km 12 Vía a Puerto Lo
pez, Vereda Barcelona, C.P. 1745, Villavicencio, Colombia
c
Escuela Superior de Física y Matema
ticas-IPN. Av. Instituto Polit

ecnico Nacional S/N, San Pedro Zacatenco, Gustavo A. Madero, CDMX, 07738, Mexico
d
Departamento de Ingenieria de Procesos e Hidraulica, Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Apartado Postal 55-534, Iztapalapa, CDMX,
09340, Mexico

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Marantha ruiziana Koern (MrK) is an Amazonian plant with starchy rhizome, which can be used as an
Received 29 March 2017 alternative botanical source for starch isolation. The morphology, crystallinity, short molecular order,
Received in revised form pasting and thermal properties of MrK starch were assessed and compared to cassava starch, a rhizome
11 May 2017
that is also harvested in the Amazonian region. The amylose content of MrK starch was 29.0%, and the
Accepted 12 May 2017
Available online 12 May 2017
granule size diameter was in range from 9.7 to 24.0 mm. Starch granules exhibited polyhedral shapes with
irregular polygonal surfaces. X-ray diffraction analysis revealed A-type crystallinity with about 26.1% of
crystallinity content. X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy evidenced reduced
Keywords:
Starch
molecular order of MrK starch compared to cassava starch, although the gelatinization and pasting
Amazonian rhizomes temperatures were higher in MrK starch. Also, MrK starch pastes showed high tendency to retrogra-
Functional properties dation after seven days of storage at 4.0
C as assessed by differential scanning calorimetry. Overall, the
Thermal properties results showed that MrK starch has interesting characteristics (e.g., high peak viscosity, thermal stability)
Crystallinity that can be exploited for applications in food and non-food products.
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Rodríguez-García, 2014). Examples of non-conventional sources of

Natural products have been an important source of food for
native inhabitants of the Amazonian region. Commonly consumed
as boiled, cooked and fermented, Amazonian natural food products
have been traditionally exploited by local consumers. Only recently,
the nature and composition of these natural products have been
attracted the interest of broader groups of consumers and academic
researchers. The motivation relies on the fact that an accurate
knowledge of the harvesting and nutrition properties of Amazonian
tubers might boost their systematic production, while triggering
the economy of impoverished communities. In particular, natural
products that can be used as sources of non-conventional flour and
starch have been considered in the recent years (Hoover, 2001;
Pineda-Go
mez, Angel-Gil, Valencia-Mun ~ oz, Rosales-Rivera, &
* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: labellop@ipn.mx (L.A. Bello-Perez).
starch are fruits as green banana (Musa paradisiaca L.), seeds as
amaranth (Amaranthus hypochondriacus), corms as mafafa (Xan-
thosoma robustum), and rhizomes as Canna edulis, lotus (Nelumbo
nucifera), and Marantaceae family, among others. Indigenous peo-
ple in tropical countries cultivate plants of Marantaceae family. The
most popular cultivars of the Marantaceae specie are Calathea
allouia, Maranta Arundinace and Maranta ruiziana Koern, and the
principal interest of these crops is their starchy rhizome (Orjuela-
Baquero, Ferna
ndez-Trujillo, & Herna
ndez, 2016). Marantaceae
starch has been used as ingredient to produce traditional cheese
bread (sagú brad), and other bakery products consumed at tropical
regions of Asia and America.
In general, starch is used in the food industry to confer func-
tional properties and/or to modify food texture and consistency
(Herna
ndez-Lauzardo, Me
ndez-Montealvo, Vela
zquez del Valle,
Solorza-Feria, & Bello-Pe
rez, 2004). Additionally, native starch can
be modified chemically, physically, and enzymatically into many
useful non-food products (Eke et al., 2009; Enriquez, Velasco, &

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2017.05.019
0023-6438/© 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 J.D. Hoyos-Leyva et al. / LWT - Food Science and Technology 83 (2017) 150e156
Ortiz, 2012) to improve its functional properties. However, alter-
native starches could give the functionality in diverse applications
without modification. The starch functionality in any applications is
governed by its physicochemical properties. Starches from different
sources are known to differ in their physical and chemical prop-
erties. Such differences are believed to arise from differences in the
amylose/amylopectin ratio in the starch granule, the molecular
weight of components, chain-length distribution of amylopectin,
the arrangement of starch components in the granule, and the
presence of minor components (proteins, lipids, phosphorus)
(BeMiller & Whistler, 2009).
Previous work (Ayala Valencia, Freitas Moraes, Vinicius
Lourenço, Barbosa Bittante, & do Amaral Sobral, 2014; Sandoval,
Ayala, & Vargas, 2014) on the characterization of starches from
Amazonian botanical sources has focused on Maranta arundinacea.
Results showed starches with relatively high amylose content
(>40%). It should be pointed out that amylose content plays an
important role in the physicochemical and functional properties of
starch-based products since this chain is the main responsible of
retrogradation (Bello-Pe
rez et al., 2006) and film formation
(Sandoval et al., 2014). Earlier studies (Herna
ndez-Medina,
Torruco-Uco, Chel-Guerrero, & Betancur-Ancona, 2008) reported
high gelatinization temperatures of Maranta arundinacea starch, a
characteristic that enables the inclusion of this starch in products
that will be subjected to high temperature processing, such as
canned food products, sauces or bakery products where processing
temperatures are up to 121
C (Belovi
c, Paji

c-Lijakovi
c, Torbica,
Mastilovi
c, & Pe
cinar, 2016; Ferna
ndez, Fern
andez, & Calero,
2016; Nicolas et al., 2016). Recently, Orjuela-Baquero et al.(2016)
found that the yield of MrK starch ranged from 8.7 to 14.4%, with
granules exhibiting ellipsoidal to polyhedral shapes, small-sized
(11 mm) and an amylose content, estimated by the iodine binding
spectrophotometric method of about 40%. Nevertheless, little is
known about the crystal structure, thermal and rheological prop-
erties of starch from Maranta arundinacea.
Given its potential commercial interest, MrK plants is an inter-
esting alternative of non-conventional starch. However, morpho-
logical and functional properties of isolated starch have been hardly
studied in the scientific literature. In this regard, the objective of
this work was to evaluate morphological, thermal, physicochemical
and rheological characteristics of starch isolated from MrK. In order
to dispose of a reference, the characteristics of MrK starch were
compared to those of cassava starch, a non-conventional starch
source that is increasingly used in the food industry (Hoover, 2001).
The results in this work should be seen as technical support for the
use of non-conventional starches for industrial applications while
expanding markets and promoting the sustainable use of Amazo-
nian biodiversity (Orjuela-Baquero et al., 2016).
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Starch isolation
Freshly rhizomes of Maranta ruiziana Koern and cassava were
collected at Orinoquia region of Colombia. The rhizomes were
washed, manually peeled, and liquefied in a commercial blender at
relation solid: water 1:2. The mixture was filtered through mesh
100 (0.15 mm) and 200 (0.075 mm) US, and the residue was washed
with distilled water. Afterwards, the filtrate was stored by 24 h to
precipitate the starch. The starch was dried in a convection oven at
40
C for 24 h. The starch powder and filtrated residue were
weighed to quantification of starch isolation yield.
151
2.2. Chemical composition
Moisture content in starch powders was carried out by triplicate
using a convection oven at 120.0 ± 1.0
C during 3 h (AACC, 2000).
Starch purity was measured as total starch percentage. The pro-
cedure includes the starch enzymatic hydrolysis with heat-stable a-
amylase and amyloglucosidase using the total starch measurement
kit from Megazyme International Ireland Ltd., according to item C
for samples that contain resistant starch. Amylose content was
measured using the amylose/amylopectin assay from Megazyme
International Ireland Ltd., which employs concanavalin-A (Con-A)
to separate the two polymers. Amylopectin was precipitated by the
addition of Con-A, and removed by centrifugation. The concentra-
tion of amylose in the starch sample was estimated as the ratio of
GOPOD absorbance at 510 nm of the supernatant of the (Con-A)
precipitated sample, to that of the total starch sample (Megazyme
International Ireland, 2011).
2.3. Light and polarized light microscopy
Samples were placed on a microscope slide, mixed with a drop
of distilled water and fixed to slide with a coverslip. The starch
granules were observed by light and polarized light microscopy
(Olympus BX45, Olympus Optical Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) with an
objective of 20 (Hoyos-Leyva, Bello-Pe
rez, Agama-Acevedo, &
Alvarez-Ramirez, 2015).
2.4. Environmental scanning electron microscopy (E-SEM)
The size and shape of starch granules were assessed using
environmental scanning electron microscopy (E-SEM, EVO LS10,
Carl Zeiss Microscopy GmbH, Jena, Germany) with a resolution of
5 nm in high vacuum mode. Samples were fixed to a conductive
tape of double glue. The analysis was performed using equipment
conditions of 15 kV electron acceleration voltage obtaining the
images on the fracture surfaces with the backscattering electron
signal to 1000 magnification.
2.5. Size distribution of starch granules
The size distribution of the starch granules was determined by
laser diffraction analysis (Mastersizer 2000, Malvern Instruments
Ltd., Malvern, UK). Samples were analyzed using the Hydro 2000S
accessory. Powders were diluted in water to achieve saturation
between 14 and 16% (concentration ~0.001%). Samples were soni-
cated during analysis to avoid aggregation of the starch granules.
2.6. X-ray diffraction
X-Ray diffraction patterns of starch samples were measured in a
diffractometer D8 Advance (Bruker AXS Inc., Madison, WI, USA)
with a detector D/tex ultra, operating at 35 kV and 15 mA, equipped
with a CuKa radiation wavelength of ¼ 0.15406 nm. Intensities
were measured in the 3.0
e37.0
range on a 2q scale with a step
size of 0.02
. The crystallinity level (% C) was determined from the
diffractogram by calculation of the area corresponding to the
crystalline peaks, total area and the instrumental noise according to
the following equation (Rodríguez et al., 1996):
Ap
%C ¼  100 (1)
At  N
where Ap is the difference between the area under the curve and
the area of the amorphous halo, At is the total area under the curve
and N is the instrumental noise.
152 J.D. Hoyos-Leyva et al. / LWT - Food Science and Technology 83 (2017) 150e156
2.7. FTIR spectroscopy
FTIR analysis was carried out in a Vertex 70 FT-IR (Bruker Optik
GmbH., Ettlingen, Germany) spectrometer equipped with a mer-
cury cadmium telluride detector and KBr beam splitter using a
Platinum Diamond ATR accessory with a diamond crystal at an
angle of incidence of 45
. Spectra were collected using 256 scans at
4 cm1 resolutions over the entire 4000-400 cm1 wavenumber
region (Hoyos-Leyva et al., 2015). Two spectra were collected for
each sample and averaged. The analysis was performed using OPUS
version 7.0 software.
2.8. Thermal properties
Gelatinization parameters of starch isolated from MrK and cas-
sava rhizomes were estimated using a differential scanning
calorimeter-DSC (TA Instrument, Q20, New Castle, NJ, USA) previ-
ously calibrated with indium. The gelatinization temperature was
evaluated as indicated by Paredes-Lo
pez, Bello-Pe

rez, & Lo

pez,
(1994) with slight modifications. Samples (2.2 mg on a dry basis)
were weighted directly into DSC aluminum pans and 7 mL of
deionized water was added. After sealing, the pans were left to
equilibrate one hour at room temperature before carry out the
analysis. The sample was subjected to a heating ramp from 30 to
120
C in a heating rate of 10
C/min. An empty aluminum pan was
used as reference. The gelatinized samples were stored at 4
C for
seven days. After this time, the samples were subjected to a heating
process similar to ramp temperature profile of gelatinization. For
both gelatinization and retrogradation runs, the onset (To ), peak
(Tp ) and end temperatures (Te ), and enthalpy (DH) were estimated
directly from the instrument software (Hoyos-Leyva et al., 2015).
2.9. Pasting profile
The pasting profile was evaluated during the cooking of the
starches in a stress rheometer (Ar-1500ex, TA Instruments, Dallas,
TX, USA) using a starch pasting cell (SPC) with a vaned rotor at 500
s1. The temperature profile started with a heating ramp temper-
ature of 5
C/min from 50 to 95
C, holding at 95
C for 10 min,
cooling ramp temperature of 5
C/min from 95 to 50
C and finally
holding at 50
C during 10 min. The sample concentration was
10.0 g/100 mL on a dry basis.
2.10. Statistical analysis
The determinations were done three times. The mean and
standard error were reported. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was
carried out, when p-value were less than 0.05 the mean compari-
son was done by Turkey's test (p < 0.05). The ANOVA and Turkey's
test was carried out using JMP software (Version 10.0.0; SAS
Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA).
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Extraction yield and starch chemical characteristics
MrK starch yield, moisture, total starch, amylose content and
particle size distribution were described in Table 1. The isolation
process of starch produced a yield of 25.9 g$100 g1. This value was
higher than other yields reported for Maranta ruiziana
(14.4 g$100 g1) (Orjuela-Baquero et al., 2016). The isolation yield of
MrK starch was higher than other roots and tuber crops that have
been used for industrial purposes such as cassava (Table 1) and
potato, for which the reported yield ranged from 9.0 to
12.6 g$100 g1 on fresh weight basis (Peshin, 2001), and higher
Table 1
Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) and cassava yield of starch isolation, starch moisture,
purity, amylose content and particle size distribution.
Starch sample MrK Cassava
Yield * (g$100 g1) 25.9 18.5
Moisture (g$100 g1) 13 ± 0.01a 12 ± 0.01b
Starch purity (g$100 g1, db) 91.5 ± 1.4a 84.4 ± 1.03b
Amylose content (g$100 g1, db) 29.0 ± 1.7a 24.5 ± 1.1b
d(0.1) (mm) 9.6 ± 0.03a 5.8 ± 0.01b
d(0.5) (mm) 16.4 ± 0.04a 12.6 ± 0.01b
d(0.9) (mm) 24.0 ± 0.1a 21.4 ± 0.02b
*The yield was based on wet weight. d (0.1), d (0.5) and d (0.9) are percentiles of
particle size distribution. db ¼ dry basis. Values are means of three
measurements ± SE. Means in rows not sharing the same letter are significantly
different (p < 0.05).
than 14.0 g$100 g1 starch content of rhizomes of Canna edulis
(Piyachomkwan et al., 2002). Starch purity was 91.5 g$100 g1 and
84.4 g$100 g1 for MrK and cassava, respectively. These values
indicated that starch isolation procedure gave a starch with low
amount of impurities. The high purity of MrK starch and yield
supported the possibility of obtaining flour and starch from this
crop.
The amylose content of MrK and cassava starch was 29.0 and
24.5 g$100 g1, respectively. Rolland-Sabate
et al. (2012) report
amylose content in the range 15e25 g$100 g1 for starch isolated
from typical cassava cultivars. A recent study (Orjuela-Baquero
et al., 2016) with iodine binding spectrophotometric method to
find that amylose content of MrK starch shows values of
40.8 ± 2.3 g$100 g1. Gibson, Solah, & McCleary (1997) have suggest
that the iodine binding spectrophotometric method tends to
overestimate amylose content since the formation of amylopectin-
iodine complexes, which reduces the concentration of free iodine
and can be absorbed into wavelengths similar to complexes of
amylose-iodine in the colorimetric methods. To avoid such uncer-
tainty, the present study was based on complex formation between
the lectin concanavalin A (Con A) and amylopectin (Morrison &
Laignelet, 1983; Yun & Matheson, 1990).
3.2. Morphology and particle size distribution
The morphology of MrK and cassava starches evaluated by E-
SEM, polarized light and light microscopy was shown in Fig. 1. Both
MrK and cassava starches showed smooth surfaces, without pores.
All observed starch granules were birefringent (Fig. 1E and .F). MrK
starch granules showed polyhedral shapes formed by irregular
polygonal surfaces, while cassava starch granules presented diverse
shapes, as semi-spherical and truncated. Interestingly, the shape of
MrK starch granules was similar to reported shapes of Marantaceae
starch granules (Herna
ndez-Medina et al., 2008; Orjuela-Baquero
et al., 2016). The particle size of MrK and cassava starches
showed unimodal distribution with a wide range of starch granules
diameter of 9.7e24.0 and 5.8e21.4 mm, respectively (Table 1). Re-
ports show that the diameter of MrK starch granules from an
analysis image of SEM micrographs is about 11.0 mm (Orjuela-
Baquero et al., 2016). The starch granule size distribution is more
accurate using the laser diffraction instrument since the analysis is
achieved from a high population of starch granules in water, while
the SEM image analysis takes a small population of granules for the
analysis. Rolland-Sabate
et al. (2012) report size granules between
7.0 and 20.0 mm for starch isolated from different cassava cultivars.
3.3. X-ray diffraction pattern and crystallinity content
The diffraction pattern and percentage of crystallinity of MrK
 J.D. Hoyos-Leyva et al. / LWT - Food Science and Technology 83 (2017) 150e156 153

Fig. 1. Morphology of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) (A, C, E) and cassava starches (B, D, F) observed by E-SEM (A, B), light microscopy (C, D) and polarized light microscopy (E, F).

and cassava starches were depicted in Fig. 2. Peaks at the angles 15
,
17
, 18
and 23
2q were observed in the diffraction pattern of both
MrK and cassava starches, corresponding to A-type crystallinity
structure. The A-type pattern has been reported in cereal starches
and is related to amylopectin with high amount of short chains
(Zobel, 1988). However, some reports show that some native
starches isolated from tropical starchy corms, roots and rhizomes
present this crystallinity pattern (Agama-Acevedo et al., 2011;
Gallant et al., 1982; Sukhija, Singh, & Riar, 2016). Other studies
report B-type (Ayala Valencia et al., 2014) and C-type X-ray
diffraction pattern in Marantaceae starches (Bertoft,
Piyachomkwan, Chatakanonda, & Sriroth, 2008). A-type crystal-
linity pattern of starch isolated from different cassava cultivars was
reported as dominant in the crystalline starch structure (up to 85%),
while B-type crystalline structure was only in the range 10e15%
(Rolland-Sabate
et al., 2012). The A-type X-ray diffraction pattern is
characterized by densely packed of numerous short chains in the
amylopectin structure, with short distance between branch chains
(Ge
rard, Planchot, Colonna, & Bertoft, 2000). The crystallinity per-
centage (Fig. 2) was 26.1% and 29.2% to MrK and cassava starches,
respectively. Differences between crystallinity level can be related
to the amylose content in MrK and cassava starches, since previous
reports suggest that the crystallinity percentage is low in starches
with higher amylose content (Cheetham & Tao, 1998).
3.4. Short-range molecular order
The organization of the external region of the starch granules
can be assessed by FTIR-ATR spectroscopy. The ATR mode is
recognized as a surface analytical method since the infrared beam
154 J.D. Hoyos-Leyva et al. / LWT - Food Science and Technology 83 (2017) 150e156

Table 2
Short-range molecular order of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) and cassava starches
assessed by FTIR-ATR.
1
Sample R (1047/1022 cm )* R (1022/995) cm1)*

MrK 0.710 ± 0.021a 0.84 ± 0.002a

Cassava 0.747 ± 0.003b 0.85 ± 0.001b

*Values are ratios of absorbance value at each wavelength. Means in column not
sharing the same letter are significantly different (p < 0.05).

Table 3
Gelatinization properties of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) and cassava starches.

Sample To (
C) Tp (
C) Te (
C) DH (J$g1) GR (
C)
a a a a
MrK 71.2 ± 0.1 77.9 ± 0.5 85.1 ± 0.8 10.6 ± 0.4 13.9 ± 0.7a
Cassava 65.9 ± 0.1b 69.2 ± 0.2b 76.8 ± 0.7b 10.2 ± 0.7a 10.8 ± 0.6b

To ¼ onset temperature; Tp ¼ peak temperature; Te ¼ end temperature;

DH ¼ gelatinization enthalpy; GR ¼ gelatinization range (Te - To). Values represent
the mean of three determinations ± SE. Means in column not sharing the same letter
are significantly different (p < 0.05).

Fig. 2. Diffractograms of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) (continuous line) and cassava
starches (dashed line).

Fig. 4. Gelatinization thermograms of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) (continuous line)

and cassava (dashed line) starches using DSC.

Fig. 3. FTIR-ATR spectrum of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) (continuous line) and
cassava (dashed line) starches.
Table 4
Retrogradation properties of Maranta ruiziana Koern and cassava starches.

Storage for 7 days at 4
C

penetrate about 2.0 mm of starch granule (Sevenou, Hill, Farhat, &
Sample To (
C) Tp (
C) Te (
C) DH (J$g1)
Mitchell, 2002). The FTIR-ATR spectra of MrK and cassava
a a a
starches are depicted in Fig. 3. The spectra of both MrK and cassava MrK 47.4 ± 0.3 62.3 ± 0.3 71.7 ± 0.1 4.5 ± 0.1a
Cassava 47.5 ± 0.2a 59.4 ± 0.1b 69.5 ± 0.1b 1.2 ± 0.1b
starches showed similar pattern, with notable peaks of absorbance
in the wavelengths 3270, 2918, 1625, 1334, 1143, 1080, 991, 925 and To ¼ onset temperature; Tp ¼ peak temperature; Te ¼ end temperature;
DH ¼ retrogradation enthalpy. Values represent the mean of three
850 cm1. The absorbance value of all distinctive absorbance peaks
determinations ± SE. Means in column not sharing the same letter are significantly
was higher for MrK starch (Fig. 3). Similar FTIR spectrum pattern is different (p < 0.05).
exhibited by native corn starch (Lobato-Calleros et al., 2015), a
cereal widely consumed in the tropical regions were maranta
plants are harvested. It is well-known that the region of 1500 to
800 cm1 is a fingerprint region of starch. The region of to the crystalline and amorphous regions within starch granules,
3700e3000 cm1 shows differences in the moisture content of the respectively (Sevenou et al., 2002; van Soest, Tournois, de Wit, &
starch powders. MrK showed high absorbance values that can be Vliegenthart, 1995). Slight differences in the absorbance ratio
linked to the high moisture content compared to the cassava starch 1047/1022 found in Fig. 3 indicated that MrK starch contains less
(Table 1). The short molecular order of MrK and cassava starches short molecular order than cassava starch. Although the FTIR-ATR
was calculated from the absorbance ratio of the wavelengths 1047/ technique does not reflect the crystallinity arrangement of starch
1022 and 1022/995 (Table 2). The bands 1047 and 1022 are related granules, the results of 1047/1022 ratio and percentage of
 J.D. Hoyos-Leyva et al. / LWT - Food Science and Technology 83 (2017) 150e156 155

Table 5
Pasting properties of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) and cassava starches.

Sample PT (
C) PV (Pa$s) Breakdown (Pa$s) Setback (Pa$s) Consistency (Pa$s) EC (min)

MrK 82.2 ± 0.0a 0.26 ± 0.009a 0.17 ± 0.010a 0.076 ± 0.022a 0.098 ± 0.001a 1.5 ± 0.0a
Cassava 69.9 ± 0.6b 0.21 ± 0.008b 0.15 ± 0.005b 0.087 ± 0.024b 0.060 ± 0.002b 1.9 ± 0.1b

PT ¼ pasting temperature; PV ¼ peak viscosity; EC ¼ the ease of cooking. Values are means of three replicates ± SE. Means in column not sharing the same letter are
significantly different (p < 0.05).

3.6. Pasting properties

Pasting properties and pasting profile are depicted in Table 5

and Fig. 5, respectively. The pasting temperature of both MrK and
cassava starches was higher than the gelatinization onset temper-
ature observed by DSC. The pasting temperature and peak viscosity
of MrK were higher than cassava starch (Table 5), a value that can
be related to amylose content. In fact, amylose is leached out of
starch granules during heating of dispersions while more water
transported into the granule, producing higher swelling and
consequently higher peak viscosity. The MrK starch showed higher
breakdown viscosity (0.17 Pa$s) than cassava starch, showing the
susceptibility of these starch granules to the combined effect of
temperature, excess water and shear rate. Corn starches show
smaller breakdown viscosity, which indicates the increased
complexity of the MrK starch chains relative to such extensively
used cereal (Sandhu & Singh, 2007). It is suggested that MrK starch
could be used a thickener in different foodstuffs (Agudelo, Varela,
Fig. 5. Pasting profile of Maranta ruiziana Koern (MrK) (continuous line) and cassava Sanz, & Fiszman, 2014). Setback value was higher for cassava
(dashed line) starches.
starch than for MrK starch. This pattern can be related to long
chains in the amylopectin, which are lixiviated after breaking of
starch granules and re-arrangement in the starch network. Con-
crystallinity confirmed the higher short-range order of cassava
sistency value match with the final viscosity value, and both values
starch.
are related with the higher amylose content of MrK starch than
cassava starch (Jane et al., 1999).

3.5. Gelatinization and retrogradation properties

4. Conclusions

The thermal gelatinization properties are shown in Table 3. MrK

The physicochemical properties of the Maranta ruiziana Koern
starch showed higher gelatinization transition temperatures than
(MrK) starch were assessed and compared to cassava starch, which
cassava starch, although the gelatinization enthalpy was similar.
is a rhizome used in the starch industry for different food appli-
However, the enthalpy value is slightly higher than the value for
cations. Starch isolated from MrK shares some properties with
native corn starch (Utrilla-Coello et al., 2014). Increased values of
starch isolated from cassava. For instance, both starches exhibit A-
gelatinization temperatures can be induced by high double-helical
type crystallinity with relative crystallinity of about 25e30%.
arrangement between amylose and amylopectin chains, as well as
However, X ray diffraction and FTIR-ATR analyses suggested that
high interactions of amylose-amylose and amylopectin-
MrK starch has less molecular order than cassava starch, suggesting
amylopectin chains. The gelatinization thermograms (Fig. 4)
reduced energy requirements to achieve complete gelatinization. A
showed a wide curve of the thermal transition of MrK starch, a
potential drawback is the increased tendency to retrogradation of
pattern that can be related to heterogeneity of granule size. Also,
gelatinized MrK dispersions. Overall, starch obtained from MrK
the wide curve of the gelatinization transition may be caused by the
cultivars has good potential for applications in food industry for,
slow leaching of amylose chains during the swelling or by the
e.g., edible film production, wall material for protection of active
formation of insoluble remnants (i.e., ghosts) during the gelatini-
additives, among many others. However, the scaling from domestic
zation (Derek, Prentice, Stark, & Gidley, 1992), resulting in a high
to industrial usage of starch from MrK should be taken with some
gelatinization range (GR) (Table 3). Interestingly, MrK starch pre-
care. In fact, it should be considered that important issues related of
sented a relatively high peak temperature (~77.9
C), suggesting
intensive and sustainable production of starch from MrK have not
potential applications as a filler in thermally stable hydrogels
been studied systematically. Although maranta genus is native to
(Biddeci et al., 2016).
tropical Central and South America, and the West Indies, the pro-
The gelatinized starch samples stored at 4.0
C for seven days
duction is still constrained to relatively small plots. Results like the
were subjected to a heating ramp like the gelatinization (Table 4).
reported in this work could stimulate the production of maranta
MrK starch showed higher retrogradation tendency (DH ¼ 4.5 J/g)
plants to improve the economy of poor populations in tropical
than cassava starch. The crystallites produced during storage in
regions.
MrK were more perfect than cassava starch due to that they were
disorganized to higher temperature. This pattern can be linked to
the high amylose content of MrK starch (Table 1). The retrograda- Conflict of interest
tion occurs mainly by influence of amylose chains and in less extent
to amylopectin chains rearrangement. No conflict of interest was declared by the authors.
156 J.D. Hoyos-Leyva et al. / LWT - Food Science and Technology 83 (2017) 150e156
Acknowledgements
We appreciate the economic support from SIP, IPN, EDI-IPN
CONACYT-Me
xico and COFAA-IPN. JDHL and LAG also acknowl-
edges the scholarship from CONACYT-Mexico.
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